Hands-on With G.Skill's TridentZ

With Ryzen’s APU finally out and leaks of the upcoming Ryzen 2, we’re sure there will be plenty of new PC gaming enthusiasts eager to build their first rig. There’s always a massive collection of components to consider, but one thing is for sure, RGB lighting has begun to dominate the scene.

It’s flooded our motherboards, RAM, fans, and cases. So chances are, if this is your first PC build, you’re going to want some capacity of glowing eye candy. Today, we’re checking out the TridentZ RGB from G.Skill, a RAM kit that not only provides incredible performance but offers a beautiful LED header.

There is a variety of kits available in several speeds and sizes while being compatible with Intel and Ryzen based systems, but in this particular article, we’re looking at the G.Skill TridentZ RGB series 16GB DDR4 2933 kit which comes with two 8GB modules. It currently runs for about $231.99 through the online retailer Newegg so its best to keep an eye on the market as prices can fluctuate.

In terms of design, the TridentZ RGB looks exactly like their previous non-RGB TridentZ RAM modules. There is an aluminum finish heat-spreaders with a fin-type design but now with a gorgeous LED lighting down the spine.

Specs

RAM Capacity: 16GB (8GBx2)
Memory Kit: Dual Channel Kit
RAM Speed: DDR4 2933 (PC4 23400)
Latency: 16-16-16-36
Voltage: 1.35v

While the RAM modules themselves are slightly bigger than a standard non-RGB module, they are still low profile enough to not cause any space interference. Luckily, you won’t need to account for any additional cabling to power the G.Skill’s RGB headers on the modules themselves. The lighting is powered completely through the RAM slots. This is somewhat of a manufacturer standard now, but we’ve previously seen RGB modules require separate wire connections for lighting and/or software control.

The TridentZ’s lighting colors and effects can be customized, as well. The best experience I’ve personally had when changing lighting settings was with the official G.Skill TridentZ RGB software. It’s worth noting that other software is supported, too. The packaging displays support for Asus’ Aura Sync application, and I’ve also found Gigabyte’s RGB fusion to work though there was some issues on keeping the motherboard and RAM lighting separate.

The default effect is a rainbow of color that trickles down in a smooth animation, but the modules can be customized independent of each other. That gives some welcome to the additional control over the interior light show going on inside the case.

You’re also going to find that the performance for the TridentZ RGB will hold up nicely. G.Skill has been a key player when it comes to desktop memory and we’re not surprised to see a solid performance though this is also being considerate of what 16GB of RAM can actually do for your PC. If you’re strictly gaming then you won’t have to worry about performance though you’ll likely want to bump up to a larger kit if you’re going to dabble with video, audio or photo editing. It’s well worth pointing out that if you begin to see any issues, however, G.Skill offers a lifetime warranty.

All-in-all, G.Skill’s TridentZ is a great option to roll with when it comes to RAM that also contains that trend of bright and colorful RGB, but again, the RGB element may come at a slightly higher premium price in comparison to non-RGB kits.

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